In a village deep in the mountains, a warrior wielding a blade was fighting against a demon with pitch-black bat-like wings growing from its back.
But in the next instant, at the center of their battle, space suddenly twisted and warped. As a baby appeared, the fractures of the shattered space swept past both of them.
Their bodies seemed to be erased by an eraser, with more than half disintegrating in an instant, reduced to shredded flesh.
Splat!
The baby who fell into the pool of blood showed a confused expression. At that moment, a message popped up before his eyes.
[Ding! Trait Plunder System Loaded Successfully!]
[Ding! Randomly Plundered Traits: Hero Descendant (White), Devil Bloodline (Green)]
Before Shinryu Hayashi could process the fact that he had just transmigrated, a burst of hurried footsteps quickly approached.
"Over here! There's a child here!"
…
…
"Kuoh Town, Chiba City, Kanagawa Prefecture. What a chaotic mixed up world."
Hayashi looked at the small town he was about to arrive at, and a smile of excitement rose on his handsome face.
He had been in this world for over ten years now, growing from a newborn baby into a teenager.
The ones who found him were villagers from a Hero clan. Upon discovering he bore the bloodline of the Heroes, they adopted and raised him. But ever since his Devil Bloodline awakened five years ago, he had been banished from the village and began a life of wandering.
As the train was about to arrive at the station, Hayashi opened his status panel.
[Name: Shinryu Hayashi]
[Rank: Middle-Class Devil]
[Traits: Transmigrator (Rainbow), Protagonist Slayer (Red), Beast Power (Blue), Devil Bloodline (Green), Hero Descendant (White)]
[Transmigrator (Rainbow): An anomaly that should not exist in this world, unaffected by the Law of Causality, having neither past nor future. Possesses the power to travel between worlds and grants one random Red Trait.]
[Protagonist Slayer (Red): A being that hunts protagonists. Can completely plunder their existence, Traits, and fate.]
[Beast Power (Blue): A fusion of the strengths of various beasts and yokai. One man is the king of a hundred beasts.]
[Devil Bloodline (Green): Inherited the bloodline of an ordinary Devil. Has average potential.]
[Hero Descendant (White): Descendant of the Hero clan. Carries very ordinary aptitude.]
Trait Quality is categorized as: White, Green, Blue, Purple, Gold, Red, Rainbow.
When he first arrived, he already possessed the [Transmigrator (Rainbow)] Trait, and [Protagonist Slayer (Red)] was granted by that Trait.
[Beast Power (Blue)] was something he recently fused together from all the Traits dropped through days and nights of hunting beasts and yokai.
This Trait granted him a tenacious and resilient body, as well as animal-like supernatural abilities, making his actual combat strength far exceed the level shown on his panel.
Getting off the train, Hayashi closed his status panel.
The moment he stepped into Kuoh Town, he checked the progress bar of the [Crossing Gate].
Seeing a slight increase, the smile on Hayashi's face grew wider.
The ability to transmigrate granted by the [Transmigrator (Rainbow)] Trait, after years of exploration, he had discovered, required the absorption of something akin to "fate."
Killing those with abundant fate, or having "intimate" interactions with them, would significantly increase the progress bar.
"The progress is at 69% already. If I hadn't been kicked out five years ago, I probably could've filled it up on Yuki back then."
Hayashi thought to himself while efficiently handling a list of matters.
His transfer application, the house he bought... all these affairs needed attending to.
Even though he was highly efficient, the tedious processes weren't something he could finish in a day.
"My grades have always been at the top. Kuoh Academy recently changed into a co-ed school, so the transfer application should go through quickly."
"Good thing I managed to save up some funds these past few years. I can buy a new house outright and don't need to rent one that a bunch of people have already lived in."
"I'll have to open a general services shop later. Still gotta make a living."
Hayashi calculated his funds and realized that buying the house cost more than robbing someone—it drained all his savings.
Even though he wasn't very interested in money, he still felt a twinge of pain.
"Looks like I'll have to go find some thugs or gangs to 'borrow' a bit of money, and investigate Kuoh Town while I'm at it."
This world and its population far exceeded Hayashi's imagination.
Even though Kuoh Town was only classified as a town, its land area was comparable to a provincial capital in his memory.
Bathed in the afterglow of the sunset, Hayashi finished surveying the area around his house.
Unfortunately, Kuoh Town's public security seemed pretty good. Even after wandering for quite a while, he didn't see a single thug.
Bzzz~~~
Just as he was about to head home, a slight fluctuation of magical energy caught his attention.
"A repelling barrier?"
Even though he'd been banished from the Hero village, Hayashi had spent almost ten years there and still retained some basic knowledge of magic formations.
"Though repelling barriers are simple, anyone who can deploy one is at least at the level of a low-ranked mage or Devil.
Kuoh Town really is a treasure trove.
I wandered around for years outside and barely encountered any decent yokai or Devils.
And now, on the first day I arrive here, something already pops up."
Overjoyed, Hayashi immediately rushed toward the park.
Meanwhile, in the park under the sunset, Hyoudou Issei, who had originally just been passing through, found himself going in circles and unable to leave.
"W-What's going on? Why can't I get out??"
This strange situation filled him with fear.
He looked around and suddenly noticed a man in a heavy coat and a round, hard hat standing at the edge of the woods.
Hyoudou Issei immediately brightened up and waved while walking toward the man.
"Hey~~! Hello there, I'm lost and—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the man before him suddenly spread a pair of pitch-black wings.
"A human hosting a Sacred Gear is a dangerous variable to us.
Though there's no divine reward for eliminating you, just die anyway!"
Dohnaseek looked coldly at Hyoudou Issei and delivered his judgment.
Hyoudou Issei couldn't understand what he was saying, but instinctively sensed that danger was imminent.
Run!
Run fast!
His body moved on instinct, sprinting in the opposite direction.
But Dohnaseek only needed to flap his wings once to instantly close the distance.
Black Fallen Angel feathers rained down, as if declaring the end of Hyoudou Issei's story.
"Light Spear!"
Dohnaseek gathered light and instantly formed a glowing spear of light.
He hurled it, and in an instant, it pierced the fleeing Hyoudou Issei below.
Splurt!
Hyoudou Issei's abdomen was impaled, and the searing pain and impact knocked him to the ground.
His head was spinning, and his vision blurred.
The fear of death made Hyoudou Issei reach out, grasping for a chance at life.
Thud thud thud!
At that moment, a set of approaching footsteps snapped him out of his fading consciousness.
He looked up and saw a boy, younger than himself, appear before him.
"H-Help me!"
Hyoudou Issei reached out and cried for help with all his might.
It seemed the other person heard him and quickly walked over.
Before Hyoudou Issei could feel even a second of relief, the sole of a shoe filled his vision.
In the next instant, Hayashi stomped heavily on Hyoudou Issei's head.
Smack!
Hyoudou Issei's skull burst open like a watermelon dropped from the third floor.